covert_historywikiaorg-20200215-history
Grayston Lynch
| death_date = |birth_place= Victoria, Texas |religion= |death= |death_place= Tampa, Florida |placeofburial= |placeofburial_label= Place of burial |allegiance= United States of America |branch= Central Intelligence Agency, United States Army |position= Paramilitary Operations Officer |unit= Special Activities Division, Army Special Forces, MACV-SOG |battles= World War II, Korean War, Bay of Pigs Invasion, Vietnam War, Laos |awards= Intelligence Star (rare CIA valor award), (2) Silver Star, (1) Bronze Star Medal, (3) Purple Hearts}} Grayston L. Lynch (14 June 1923 – 10 August 2008) was an American soldier and CIA officer. He was one of the two CIA agents who commanded the faction of the army that went to war in the Bay of Pigs Invasion. The other agent was William "Rip" Robertson. Lynch was born in Tampa, Florida and was the son of an oil driller. He was wounded at Normandy, the Battle of the Bulge, and Heartbreak Ridge in Korea; served with the Special Forces in Laos; and received three Purple Hearts, two Silver Stars and one Bronze Star with a "V" for valor, among other awards. He was selected from the elite to become a Paramilitary Operations Officer in the CIA's famed Special Activities Division in 1960. For his extraordinary heroism at the Bay of Pigs, Lynch was awarded the Intelligence Star, the CIA's most coveted award. In the six years after the Bay of Pigs invasion, he ran commando raids into Cuba. Lynch retired from the CIA in 1971.Decision for Disaster Betrayal at the Bay of Pigs, Grayston L. Lynch, Publisher: Potomac Books, Inc.,Pub. Date: January 2000ISBN 9781574882377 Military service Lynch lied about his age and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1938 and was assigned to 5th Cavalry at Fort Clark, Texas. During World War II he was assigned to the Second Division as platoon sergeant. During D-day he landed at Omaha Beach and then fought in the Battle of the Bulge where he was seriously wounded. He served in the Korean War with the Second Division as Second Lt., promoted to First Lt., wounded at Battle of Bloody Ridge. Later served in Laos with 77th Special Forces Group as Captain, retiring from them in 1960. Education Lynch received a BA degree in political science from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1953. CIA career In 1960 he joined the CIA working under Theodore Shackley. He wrote a book, Decision for Disaster: Betrayal at the Bay of Pigs, based on his experience leading the rebel Brigade 2506. Lynch is referred to or mentioned in the following books: *Corn,D. Blond Ghost. 1994 (76, 82, 84, 111-2, 117) *CounterSpy 1976-12 (11-2) *Covert Action Information Bulletin 1978-#1 (8, 11-2) *Dinges,J. Landau,S. Assassination on Embassy Row. 1981 (286) *Escalante,F. The Secret War. 1995 (64, 137) *Freed,D. Death in Washington. 1980 (195) *Hersh,S. The Dark Side of Camelot. 1997 (172, 275) *Hinckle,W. Turner,W. The Fish is Red. 1981 (vii, 61, 88, 99, 121-2, 341-2) *Livingstone,N. The Cult of Counterterrorism. 1990 (362) *NameBase NewsLine 1997-01 (10) *New York Times 1996-04-29 (A10) *Prados,J. Presidents' Secret Wars. 1988 (185, 204, 265) *Russell,D. The Man Who Knew Too Much. 1992 (518) *Scott,P.D. Marshall,J. Cocaine Politics. 1991 (27, 29) *Turner,W. Rearview Mirror. 2001 (191, 193, 203) *Weiner,T. Legacy of Ashes. 2007 (177) *Wyden,P. Bay of Pigs. 1979 (83-6, 301) References External links * Miami Herald article (1998) * War of Wits Publishing Ltd Biographical Data on Lynch's own website * Spartacus Educational Category:Irregular military Category:1923 births Category:People of the Central Intelligence Agency Category:John F. Kennedy Category:Cold War spies Category:2008 deaths Category:Recipients of the Silver Star Category:Recipients of the Bronze Star Medal Category:Recipients of the Purple Heart medal Category:American military personnel of World War II Category:Recipients of the Intelligence Star